The Asheville citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1885-1889, 1887-09-20
lFor inc Asheyille CITIZEN.
SPRING WHEAT, BARLEY, MILLET
AND HUNGARIAN GRASS.

Editors Citizen:-I have been experiment
ing little with the above, with the fol
lowing results:
My land used for farmingis on the toI
of the mountain and very good. Ny
wheat and barley were on land used las
year for corn, and which will bring from
80 to 80 bushels per acre. The Millet
and Hungarian grass were on land thai
had been lying out for the past 12 or Il
years and had heavy coat of Daisy and
very light coat of Blue grass on it, and
turned in May, should have been turned
in the Fall. On the 25th and 27th o!
March sowed q bgshel of Spring wheat
and % of barley on about acres of land
each. Standing I don't think I ever saw
two prettier pieces of grain, although ]
have seen wheat that turned off 80 bush.
els per acre. The wheat thrashed out 40
bushels and the barley 85, or 81 and 425
bushels per acre. The wheat had great
many of the cap buElie damaged. Had
IL rriff --v-===Ts00u I woaT3 haV5 sSsts ~ %
bushels per acre. Isowed 8 bushels OF
winter wheat last October, and got Z in
return and it was on good land. Barley
is little troublesome, being bearded, but
not more SO than rye. IN if it is
troublesome, will not 424 bushes of grain
weighing over so lbs. to the bushel pay
for little extra trouble and few hours
discomfort from the boards? Barley is
very fattening for stock of all kinds es-
pecially hogs, and can certainly be raised
much cheaper than corn. AS it skaters
very badly when fully ripe it should be
cut little before fully ripe. AS the
head ripens first the straw will ripen the
grain if cut little green. The Millet
and Hungarian grass sowed three ways,
Millet and Hungarian alone and mixed
halt and half had in altogether about
10 acres and judging from what I have
hauled so far, will have over 20 tons. 1
find that Hungarian grass makes the
finest hay, although Millet and Hungar-
ian together SooUed thickly makes nearly as
good, but if sowed thinly the millet
grows too rank and shades the other so
that the crop will be very nearly all
millet and is apt to be rather coarse.
Millet sowed by itself thickly makes a
very good hay, but coarser than the
Hungarian grass. sowed about BUSH
el to the acre and where / sowed the two
together I mixed half and half. The
land used 1 suppose would bring from
20 to 25 bushels OF corn per acre. The
ull1SC grow dUOu1 . anu tIlO hungarian
2 feet high. l sowed on half an acre q
little over u peck of millet for seed. 1t
grew very rank and tall, some few
stalks measuring z feet inches, but that
was good deal above the average. l
think the piece would average feet and
had very large heads. OF course that
would be rather poor feed. Although if
it were run through cutter and mixed
with meal, &c, cattle would eat it all. I
have always heard that both Mil.et and
Hungarian grass were very hard on land.
I believe it is if allowed to ripen its seed,
but if cut when in the milk or just form
ing dough. don't think it is any harder
on land than oats. One of the best pieces
of corn on the mountain this year is
acres that had in millet last year. 1
sowed the Millet and Hungarian this
year about the middle of June, but shall
try in futgzs 10 get It in hS-the.fGe49@ I
used 4 cradle last yenis > - ID c.F cut
most of it with scythss and think it is
the best Unless you can use mower,
although for seed the cradle makes the
grass more convenient for handling.
FRANK D. Polk.
Elk Mountain Farm, N. c.